Amikura Feels Guilty / We'll Crush Ryuuen with Money if We Have To

"The average score for this final exam was calculated by grade level. If Class A and Class D share the exam answers and work together to lower the average score, it would be very easy to do so."

"Furthermore, I'm confident I can create an extremely difficult exam paper and have you submit it to the school, thus reducing the chances of Class C getting a high score."

"I think I'm totally worth 100 Class Points," Ayanokoji said calmly. "Besides, the chances of Class B facing off against Class C one-on-one aren't that high."

He hoped that Aoyama would specifically name Class D as the successful candidate. As for the fact that some students dropped out of Class D, what did that have to do with him, a transfer student?

Hirata, he had already done what Hirata had asked him to do, so what could he do if he was just unlucky?

"Hehehe, I'm liking you more and more, Ayanokoji."

After thinking it over, Ryuen roughly guessed what Ayanokoji was thinking; this approach was exactly to his liking.

Class D attacks Class A, Class A attacks Class B, Class B attacks Class C, and Class C attacks Class D.

If this result can be achieved, then it will be easy for Class B to defeat Class C in terms of academic ability.

As for what will happen to Class D, who cares?

Chapter 262 The Guilty Amikura

The evening after the lottery ended.

Filled with a deep sense of guilt, Amikura knocked on Aoyama's dormitory door alone.

No matter what, she broke her verbal agreement with Aoyama.

"They've arrived."

Less than two seconds after the knock, a calm male voice came from inside. Aoyama, wearing a cute pink apron, appeared in front of the Amikura as the door opened.

"Oh, it's Amikura! This is a rare guest, please come in."

Her eyes held no anger or mockery; Aoyama even smiled slightly, his expression calm and composed.

"... Aoyama, are you cooking?"

No one would guess that the pink apron belonged to Aoyama. After following Aoyama inside, Amikura smelled a pleasant fragrance.

The rich aroma of meat made her, who hadn't eaten yet, want to give it a try.

He was skilled in both martial arts and literature, and could even cook. She felt that Aoyama was a bit too outstanding, so it was no wonder that Ichinose was so infatuated with him.

"Yes, that's why I don't have time to entertain you right now. Please have a seat." Aoyama quickly walked back to the kitchen, put the stir-fried potatoes and beef into the pressure cooker, and then pressed the stew button.

Because it needs to simmer for almost half an hour, this dish should be prepared as a top priority.

As he turned to leave the kitchen to entertain Amikura, he found Amikura standing outside the kitchen door, staring at him absentmindedly.

"What are you thinking about, Amikura?"

Curious about what Amikura was thinking, Aoyama stretched out his right hand and pulled, causing Ichinose's apron to come loose, which he then reattached to the hook.

The pink apron didn't suit him at all, but no one would think that he was a pervert when he wore it.

"Ah... it's nothing." Suddenly startled, Amikura quickly looked away from Aoyama.

Wearing a pink apron and cooking, Aoyama exuded a strong sense of homeliness, which unconsciously made her thoughts drift to fantasies about cooking with her boyfriend after she had one.

For a moment, she forgot that she had come to apologize.

"Tell me, under what circumstances Amikura you forced to break your agreement with me?"

After washing and drying his hands, Aoyama left the kitchen and sat on his bed, his gaze falling on Amikura, who was sitting at his desk.

This time, he was also tricked by the Amikura. Judging from Ryuen's intriguing smug smile at the end, he guessed that the result of Class C successfully facing off against Class D and giving Class D the test paper was in Ryuen's favor.

Assuming Class A received a guarantee of victory, then Ryuen should be confident of defeating Class C.

In other words, Class A is very likely to provide Class B with an easy test paper and most of the answers.

Aoyama still believes in me.

Hearing that Aoyama believed she had been forced to break the agreement, Amikura felt a surge of pleasure, followed by a deeper sense of guilt.

The boy in front of her trusts her so much, yet she can't keep her promise to him.

"It was Kanzaki, back then..."

With a wry smile, Amikura recounted the circumstances under which he was forced to sign the contract.

The afternoon after the exam rules were announced, Kanzaki took her to a private room in a café under the pretext of discussing class matters. There, she met Ryuen and Ayanokoji Kiyotaka from Class D.

Moreover, not only were there two boys from another class, but also several boys from my class, including Shibata Sou, Hamaguchi Tetsuya, and Watanabe Norihito.

Next, Ryuen proposed a strategy that would guarantee Class A's victory. After forming an alliance, Class A would only need to cooperate slightly with Classes Class B and Class D to plunder fifty Class Points from those two classes.

All Class A needs to do is to borrow 10 million personal points from Class B interest-free in early December, and Class B will repay the loan in three months.

It was like a windfall; the Amikura couldn't find a reason to persuade the boys in their class not to cooperate with classes Class B Class D.

In particular, Ryuen and Ayanokoji's stated message was that they didn't want any students to drop out of Class B or Class D, even if it meant they would lose before the Special Exam even started.

"Because Ryuen and Ayanokoji said that if Class A doesn't agree now, they'll immediately go and cooperate with Class C, so I can't even find an excuse to refuse and think about it for a long time."

"As for the specifics of how Class A will cooperate, I signed a contract and can't tell anyone, and I didn't tell you before the draw either."

With her eyes lowered, Amikura lowered her head in shame.

It was all because of her lack of ability that she found herself in that situation where she was forced to sign a contract.

Ultimately, it was she who set Aoyama up this time, causing Aoyama to fail the next Special Exam.

"Don't feel guilty. I didn't blame you, nor did I expect you to disclose the specific details of the contract against your will."

While waiting for Aoyama's reprimand with Amikura head down, she noticed that Aoyama had suddenly walked up to her. Then she felt a hand on her head, a large, warm hand gently stroking her hair.

This is the third time already, so it's okay, right?

With her arm slightly raised and then lowered, Amikura fully enjoyed the feeling of being pampered by the Aoyama.

"Ultimately, it's my fault for not being popular with the boys in Class A, which is why you couldn't bring yourself to say what you made to me. So Amikura you feel guilty, it means I should feel guilty too."

"I'm a little reluctant to do this."

He chuckled Aoyama, savoring the delicate, smooth texture of the Amikura's purple hair.

He figured that Ayanokoji was somewhat useful after managing to get closer to such a cute girl as Amikura.

Moreover, for every plan you devise, there's a countermeasure. Although the current situation is somewhat unfavorable for Class C, it's not impossible to turn things around. In any case, Class C can at least defeat Class D and remain undefeated.

"... Aoyama, you don't need to comfort me like that," Amikura said somewhat embarrassedly.

No matter how you look at it, she's wrong; she didn't know how to respond to what Aoyama said.

"I was just stating the facts."

Finally, Aoyama smoothed down Amikura's beautiful high ponytail and withdrew his hand from Amikura's head.

"Let's have dinner together later. It's better to be lucky than early. This is your first time visiting our Amikura, so you can try my cooking." Aoyama said gently as he walked into the kitchen.

He invited Horikita Suzune over tonight to discuss something, having already eaten quite a few meals at her Horikita Suzune, so he planned to show off his skills today.

"Um... maybe I shouldn't come, I didn't even make any prior arrangements."

I was really tempted, but Amikura felt bad that I had already done something wrong and would feel too embarrassed to freeload off them for no reason.

"There's a saying that free food tastes the best, don't you want to try it, Amikura?" Aoyama shouted towards the door. "If Amikura thinks my cooking must be terrible, then I won't stop you."

"Since you've said that, how can I leave?"

Upon hearing Aoyama's completely unreasonable statement, Amikura immediately pouted and replied.

"Very good, then take this opportunity to think carefully about how to praise delicious food while eating."

"Hmph, you're still as shameless as ever."

A smile played on his lips as Amikura, relieved of his burdens, began to carefully examine the room.

Chapter 163 We'll smash Ryuen to death even if we have to pay up

"Was the Amikura also promoted by you?"

With the tap running, Horikita Suzune was washing the dishes after eating, while Aoyama was cleaning the kitchen.

After having dinner together, Amikura wanted to help with the dishes, but Aoyama refused, saying he would leave Suzune to Aoyama. With nothing else to do, Amikura went home.

Once only the two of them were left in the room, Horikita Suzune no longer had any reservations.

"How could that be? I only pushed the trash bag up there for you." Aoyama tied the trash bag up. "Suzune, you're special to me, even though I'm not to you."

After a moment of surprise, Horikita sneered, "Heh, special? Well, you have quite a few special girls in your heart."

God knows how surprised she was to find the Amikura when she entered. It was at that moment that she wondered if Aoyama, who had once promoted her, had a fetish for collecting female leaders.

Before she arrived, Aoyama had been spending time with the man and woman from the Amikura, and their relationship seemed quite familiar.

"Although there are many, they are also special."

"Let's talk business after you've finished washing the dishes."

After washing and drying his hands, while Horikita Suzune's hands were occupied, Aoyama took the opportunity to smooth his long hair, which he hadn't touched in a long time, and savor the smoothness he had enjoyed before.

"Shameless."

"You've known me for a while now, Suzune."

With a gentle smile, Aoyama inhaled the faint fragrance of her long, black hair before leaving the kitchen under Horikita's cold gaze.

Not long after, Horikita, with a blank expression, sat down across the table from him.

To appease the somewhat annoyed Horikita, Aoyama poured her a cup of tea. "You're one of the students who set the questions for Class D, aren't you?"

If you know the answer, don't ask me.

Horikita Suzune pursed her lips. Class D had no Naoko from Aoyama at all. Karuizawa and his gang, along with Sakura Kushida, made up almost a quarter of the current Class D members.

Even now, she still doesn't know how to deal with this group of people.

"So there is, but I advise you not to waste your time." Aoyama didn't keep you in suspense. "According to my information, Class A will receive all the answers to the exam set by your class."

Although Amikura didn't say anything explicitly, a lot can be inferred from the subtle details.

For Class B to surpass the academically strongest Class C, it must achieve a very high total score. Conversely, for Class A to surpass Class B, which has a high total score, it must also raise its overall score by a significant margin.

Horikita Suzune looked anxious. "Impossible. The only people who set the questions were me, Ayanokoji, and Hirata."

Fearing information leaks, she even recruited Wang Meiyu, an academically excellent student who had no connection with Aoyama, into the question-setting team.

"After learning the exam rules, fearing a repeat of the Sports Festival or unexplained restrictions on submitting the paper, I immediately bought an archaeology exam paper and submitted it."

"After confirming with Chabashira-sensei, no one but me can change the exam paper."

After being swindled out of ten million yen of class funds and suffering a crushing defeat at the Sports Festival, Horikita Suzune is determined to give Class D a victory to boost morale.

Although their class was extremely unlucky, they ended up being matched with the best academically capable classes Class A and Class C.

After learning of the misfortune, Aoyama's Class C had no intention of winning, but it was different for Amikura's Class A.

"It seems you don't know anything yet." Aoyama shook his head and then nodded.

Judging from Horikita's reaction, she was completely unaware of Ayanokoji's plan, which proved that Horikita had been manipulated again. However, he felt that Horikita made some progress by immediately snatching the exam paper and submitting it.

Horikita Suzune clenched her fist under the desk. "What are you saying I don't know?"

Having spent a lot of time with Aoyama, she knew that Aoyama liked to mislead people, but he didn't like to lie; at least, he had never lied to her.

"I'm telling you, you don't know what Ayanokoji did. For example, he specifically targeted Class A from the beginning and succeeded, which also set a precedent for Class D, ensuring they would lose no matter what," Aoyama said calmly.

From the moment Class D successfully nominates Class A, no matter what Class D chooses, the only path left is for the Class Points to be reset to zero.

"... Please be more specific."

With a grim expression and biting her lower lip, Horikita Suzune revealed a fleeting moment of cowardice.

She failed once again after leaving Aoyama's help.

"I've already said the intelligence is valuable, but this time I'll only charge a small price." Sitting down next to Horikita, Aoyama placed his hand on her head.

The alliance of Classes A, Class A's guaranteed victory; and Ryuen's delight at Class D being drawn by Class C.

Stroking Horikita's fine black hair, he explained his speculations and the evidence in detail.

"Ayanokoji will transfer to another class before the final exams. He's scared; he's afraid I'll spend Twenty Million Personal Points to expel him."

"Class B couldn't raise the twenty million, so they needed Class A's help. For his own safety, he sold Class D for a good price."

"By the way, the test that Class C is going to prepare for the rival class was created by the three of us: your brother, who is the top student in the third year; Kiryuin, who is the top student in the second year; and me, who is the top student in the first year."